2026 NFL Draft: 1 Thing to Know About Notable Day 3 Picks

Yes, it’s Day 3 of the 2026 NFL Draft and the picks fly off the board on what’s the final day of the yearly spectacle. With that said, there are still plenty of star collegiate players taken on Day 3 that have a chance to start from the jump at the next level. Here’s one thing to know about the top selections from Day 3 of the 2026 NFL Draft: Tennessee CB Jermod McCoy (pick No. 101, Las Vegas Raiders): Had four interceptions in 2024 If healthy, McCoy would’ve been a Day 2, if not a Day 1 pick. Why? Well, that’s because he missed the entire 2025 college football season due to a torn ACL injury, with the former Volunteers and Oregon State Beavers (2023) defensive back potentially needing more surgery for the matter. In 2024, McCoy reeled in four interceptions, logged nine passes defended and racked up 44 combined tackles; the year prior, he had two interceptions. Clemson QB Cade Klubnik (pick No. 110, New York Jets): Was No. 1 QB recruit in Class of 2022 Klubnik was the consensus top quarterback prospect in the Recruiting Class of 2022, with him becoming the Tigers’ full-time quarterback for the 2023 season. Over his three seasons as Clemson’s starting quarterback (2023-25), Klubnik averaged 3,142.0 passing yards, 23.7 passing touchdowns, seven interceptions and a 138.1 passer rating per year, while completing 64.2% of his passes. Kubnik’s best season arguably came in 2024, as he threw for 3,639 yards and 36 touchdowns and rushed for 463 yards and seven scores, a season that saw Clemson reach the College Football Playoff. Indiana WR Elijah Sarratt (pick No. 115, Baltimore Ravens): Played for head coach Curt Cignetti on two teams Sarratt was among the many players who followed Cignetti from the James Madison Dukes — with whom he played for one season after spending the 2022 season with the Saint Francis Red Flash — to the Hoosiers for the 2024 season. Last season (2025), Sarratt totaled 65 receptions for 830 yards and a Big Ten-high 15 touchdowns en route to Indiana winning its first National Championship in program history. Miami (Fla.) CB Keionte Scott (pick No. 116, Tampa Bay Buccaneers): Had two pick-sixes in 2025 After two seasons at Snow College (2020-21) and three seasons with the Auburn Tigers (2022-24), Scott transferred to play for the Hurricanes in 2025, with Miami going on to reach the College Football Playoff National Championship. In his lone season at Miami, Scott reeled in two interceptions, running back both of those picks for touchdowns. He also tallied two forced fumbles and five passes defended. Penn State DE Dani Dennis-Sutton (pick No. 120, Green Bay Packers): Had 23.5 sacks in college Dennis-Sutton was among the more productive pass rushers in the Big Ten over his four years with the Nittany Lions (2022-25), most notably totaling 8.5 sacks in each of the last two years. He finished his collegiate career with 23.5 sacks, while forcing seven fumbles from 2023-25. Oregon LB Bryce Boettcher (pick No. 135, Indianapolis Colts): Was selected in the MLB Draft That’s not a typo. Boettcher played both football and baseball for the Ducks, with his performance in the latter sport resulting in Boettcher being selected by the Houston Astros in the 13th round of the 2024 MLB Draft. While he played baseball at Oregon from 2021-24, Boettcher played football for the Ducks from 2022-25. Last season (2025), he led the Big Ten with 80 assists, while also logging 136 combined tackles and two forced fumbles. North Dakota State WR Bryce Lance (pick No. 136, New Orleans Saints): Is the younger brother of QB Trey Lance The Bison receiver is the younger brother of the former No. 3 pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, who also played at North Dakota State. As for the new Saints wideout, Lance, who spent six seasons at North Dakota State, averaged 63 receptions for 1,066 yards and 12.5 touchdowns per season from 2024-25. Texas DB Michael Taaffe (pick No. 158, Miami Dolphins): Three-year starter for Longhorns Taaffe was among the faces of the Longhorns’ defense, playing five seasons for the school and starting from 2023-25, which included appearances in the College Football Playoff in 2023 and 2024. Over the aforementioned span (2023-25), Taaffe averaged 2.3 interceptions and 65.3 combined tackles per season. Penn State RB Nicholas Singleton (pick No. 165, Tennessee Titans): 1st in Penn State history in rushing touchdowns Over his four seasons playing for the Nittany Lions (2022-25), Singleton rushed for a combined 3,461 yards and 45 touchdowns, which is first in program history; Singleton’s rushing yards rank fourth in Penn State history. Ohio State S Lorenzo Styles Jr. (pick No. 172, New Orleans Saints): Brother of No. 7 pick Sonny Styles After two seasons playing for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish (2021-22), Styles transferred to Ohio State, where he was teammates with his brother, Sonny Styles, from 2023-25; Styles was selected by the Washington Commanders with the No. 7 pick. Furthermore, Lorenzo Styles was a wide receiver at Notre Dame before switching to a full-time defensive back in 2023. North Dakota State QB Cole Payton (pick No. 178, Philadelphia Eagles): Dual-threat QB with potential positional versatility Payton was a one-year starter at North Dakota State, but he showed enough on tape to be a fifth-round pick. Will he play quarterback at the next level, though? You can read more about Payton here. Arkansas QB Taylen Green (pick No. 182, Cleveland Browns): Arguably the best athlete at QB in this year’s class The Browns have added another quarterback to their quarterbacks room, taking Green at the start of the sixth round. Green set records in the vertical jump (43.5 inches) and broad jump (11 feet, 2 inches) for a quarterback at the history of the combine, while also running a 4.36 40. Green threw for 2,714 yards, 19 touchdowns and 11 interceptions to go with 777 rushing yards and eight rushing touchdowns this past season. Penn State RB Kayton Allen (pick No. 187, Washington Commanders): Penn State’s all-time leader in rushing yards While many things didn’t go Penn State’s way in 2025, Allen wasn’t a reason for that. Allen rushed for over 1,000 yards for the second straight year and finished his time at Penn State with four seasons of at least 800 yards. As a result, Allen’s 4,180 career rushing yards set a Penn State record for the most rushing yards in program history. Allen had 1,303 yards on 6.2 yards per carry and 15 touchdowns in 2025. LSU QB Garrett Nussmeier (pick No. 249, Kansas City Chiefs): Was viewed as a potential 1st-round pick entering 2025 season Entering the 2025 college football season, Nussmeir was among a handful of quarterbacks who some thought could be the No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft. However, his struggles at LSU this past season ended that possibility, throwing for 1,927 yards, 12 touchdowns and five interceptions in nine games before he was sidelined for the remainder of the regular season. Still, Nussmeier was viewed as a potential Day 2 pick entering the 2026 NFL Draft. FOX Sports NFL Draft expert Rob Rang had Nussmeier as his third-best quarterback prospect, ranking him No. 71 in his top 150 prospects list.